Colonial High School Spanish teacher Johanna Lopez was named the 2017 Orange County Teacher of the Year during a ceremony at the Rosen Centre Hotel Wednesday night.
Lopez is the first Hispanic teacher at Orange County Public Schools to receive the award.
“It is very satisfying seeing my students growing intellectually and as leaders through the months,” Lopez said. “We grow together as a team and learn reciprocally.”
As winner of the award, Lopez will receive several prizes including annual passes to Disney for her and her family, a three-day cruise to the Bahamas, a $5,000 check from OCPS and much more.
Lopez has been teaching at Colonial High School since 1999. She will now represent Orange County in the 2017 Florida Department of Education/Macy’s Teacher of the Year competition.